Marquette's Season of Champions continues into the NCAA Tournament's opening weekend Dec. 6-7 - All-BIG EAST Tournament selections Nele Barber, Meghan Niemann and Elizabeth Koberstein, and coach Bond Shymansky focus on how the team stays loose this time of year.

Since Bond Shymansky's arrival at Marquette in December of 2008, his motto of "Success Today" has helped a program on the rise reach unparalleled results.

To begin his tenure, Shymansky has led the Golden Eagles to their most successful four-year stretch in program history with a winning percentage of over .700, two NCAA Championship appearances, three consecutive trips to the BIG EAST Conference tournament semifinals and one BIG EAST title match appearance.

In his four seasons at Marquette, Shymansky has helped eight players earn AVCA All-America honors and setter Chelsea Heier earn conference and region freshman of the year in 2011. Eleven Golden Eagles have been named All-BIG EAST Conference honorees under his watch and MU's success in the classroom was recognized with the AVCA Team Academic Award in 2011 for the first time in program history.

In his 11 seasons as a head coach, Shymansky has accumulated 264 career victories and a winning percentage of .719, placing him in the top 25 among all active NCAA Division I head coaches and first in the BIG EAST Conference.

In total, 17 student-athletes have claimed All-America honors under his tutelage and 18 different players have earned a total of 33 all-conference selections.

His fast-paced offense has led to statistical greatness for Marquette in his short tenure. Three Golden Eagles have ranked in the top 10 nationally in assists per set (Nikki Nikki Klingsporn, 2010; Heier, 2011; Elizabeth Koberstein, 2012), while two also landed in the top 20 in hitting percentage (Rabbecka Gonyo, 2010; Danielle Carlson, 2011 and 2012). His 2010 squad hit an astounding .288 as a team with a lineup bolstered by six eventual All-Americans, including Klingsporn, Gonyo, Carlson, Ashley Beyer, Ciara Jones and Holly Mertens.

The Golden Eagles made their second-straight trip to the NCAA tournament in 2012 with a program-best mark of 27-7 overall and a 13-2 ledger in the BIG EAST, the most conference victories in MU history.

The 2011 BIG EAST Coach of the Year guided the Golden Eagles to a 24-11 mark in 2011 and their first NCAA Championship appearance, including a first round victory over No. 24 Western Kentucky. He was also named the 2011 AVCA Northeast Region Coach of the Year, his second career AVCA region coach of the year award. Shymansky claimed his 200th career victory in a three-set sweep of St. John's on Oct. 8, 2010 as MU went on a school-record 14-match winning streak from Oct. 1-Nov. 12.

In his first season at Marquette in 2009, Shymansky guided the Golden Eagles to an overall record of 18-12 after the team went 11-18 in the year prior to his arrival.

Shymansky's energy and enthusiasm also brought a great deal of life to the Al McGuire Center during his first campaign. He encouraged great student and fan participation, resulting in the first time the building had ever been filled to capacity (4,000) for a volleyball match (Oct. 16, Georgetown).

Shymansky arrived in Milwaukee after serving for each of the previous seven seasons as head coach at Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets made three NCAA tournament appearances during that time and garnered multiple team and individual accolades.

Georgia Tech posted an overall record of 172-64 (.729) during his tenure, including a 96-38 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He concluded the 2008 campaign with the highest career winning percentage among active ACC coaches, a mark that ranked among the top-20 in the nation.

In seven seasons, Shymansky led Georgia Tech to the NCAA Sweet 16 (2003), the NCAA Elite 8 (2004), ACC Tournament Championship (2002) and ACC Regular Season Championship (2003 and 2004). He was named the league's coach of the year in 2004 after guiding the program to a 27-7 overall record and a perfect 16-0 conference campaign. He was also the AVCA East Region Coach of the Year that season.

A pair of Yellow Jackets were tabbed the ACC Player of the Year during his tenure at Tech and four players earned spots on the ACC All-Freshman Team.

Shymansky, who initially joined the Georgia Tech coaching staff as an assistant coach under Shelton Collier in February 2000, served as the team's defensive and blocking coordinator in his first two seasons. He was also responsible for scouting opponents, team travel and summer camps and assisted in the training of Maja Pachale, the 2001 ACC Player of the Year, Lauren Sauer, the 2001 ACC Rookie of the Year, and Kele Eveland, the 2003 ACC Player of the Year and 2000 ACC Rookie of the Year.

Prior to his arrival at Georgia Tech, Shymansky spent two seasons on the coaching staff at Iowa State, including a four-month stint as the interim head coach in 1999.

In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Shymansky has coached in both the high school and club ranks. He served as the head coach at Iowa City High School from 1996-97, guiding his squad to the state semifinals in his second season.

A native of Iowa City, Iowa, Shymansky began his volleyball career at the University of Iowa, where he was a member of the men's volleyball club as a setter and outside hitter from 1991-93. He earned his degree in communications in 1995 from Iowa before completing his master's degree in secondary English education in 1998.

Shymansky is married to the former Catherine Cruikshank of Iowa City, Iowa. The couple has a daughter Corrina, and two sons, Nicholas and Bond.

Shymansky's Coaching Record

Year

School

Record

Pct.

Conference

Record

Pct.

Place

Notes

2013

Marquette

26-6

.813

BIG EAST

15-1

.938

1st

NCAA Second RoundBIG EAST Tournament TitleBIG EAST Reg. Season TitleBIG EAST COY